Lauraine Snelling

Nilda Carlson and her younger brother Ivar come to America to join her older brother Rune and his family on the Strand farm in Minnesota. Uncle Einar Strand refuses to help Rune build a house for his family and forbids the community to come onto his land. Can the tragedy that reveals Einar's anger and isolation bring the Carlsons and Strands together into a true family?

"Larkspur Nielsen is ready for a change. Her parents have passed on, and her older brother is successfully running the family business. She bristles at the small-mindedness that permeates life in her small Ohio community, and she sees little chance of a satisfying future there. She has a little money saved, and after turning the tables on a crooked gambler who had fleeced several locals, including her younger brother, she can stake a new start for...

After graduating in May of 1900, Andrew Bjorklund and Ellie Wold of Blessing, North Dakota make plans to marry once the harvest is over and their new house is finished. They spend the summer working hard, and the Lord seems to shine on and in them in a special way. Everyone rejoices in their happiness. Everyone except for Toby Valders, who is determined to get even for all the drubbings he has taken from Andrew through the years. Andrew, however,...

"Though she has known hardships in her life, Ingeborg Bjorklund chooses to focus on all she has been given. Blessed with children and grandchildren, she enjoys the friendship and support of the entire Blessing, North Dakota, community. And after several years of widowhood, she has reached a place of contentment with her life. Meanwhile, her stepson Thorliff is raising two children alone since his beloved Elizabeth died. But there is a new schoolteacher...

"Delphinium Nielsen and her sisters have accomplished much in the past year, traveling west and settling in Nebraska. They are on their way to building a garden in dedication to their mother and working against the forces of nature to make their farm thrive. However, none of that can mask their concern that they are quickly running out of money. Del's work teaching in their booming town offers hope, not only to support her sisters financially, but...

She thought she knew what she wanted in life . . . then Jonathan arrived.Eighteen-year-old Grace Knutson loves Blessing, North Dakota, and sees no reason to leave. She's more serious-minded than her twin sister, Sophie, and very sensitive to the feelings of others. In spite of her family's disapproval, Grace has always had a soft spot in her heart for Toby Valders, for she's seen the vulnerable side he keeps well hidden. Jonathan Gould, the handsome...

Recognizing how common it is for crafters to start many projects and finish few, a group of women join together to form a guild-Unfinished Projects Anonymous-to keep each other on track and accountable. Three of the friends are tasked with the job of home visits for their guild. Laughingly called "the Cartel," they snoop around craft rooms and knitting baskets to report on progress for the members. They even expand their mission to include checking...

Mary Martha travels to the town of Blessing in the Dakota Territory to visit her brother and his family, and her growing love for the community--especially Pastor John Solberg--has her entertaining thoughts of staying on, but she is called back to Missouri to care for her ailing mother, leaving her to hope that good-bye does not mean forever.

For as far back as he can remember, the dream of becoming a writer has burned brightly in Thorliff's heart. But when he arrives at college, things are not as he had imagined. Thorliff longs for the familiarity and nurture of his loved ones back home. The distance has created a rift between Thorliff and his childhood sweetheart. The only bright spot in his life is his job at the town newspaper. Will he be forced to leave one dream behind to pursue...

Nineteen-year-old Rebecca Baard has experienced more than her share of sorrow, and now she is afraid to open her heart to love. Besides, no man has ever shown enough interest in her to come courting. So Rebecca's friends set out to remedy the situation, concocting social events to attract all the eligible bachelors in Blessing and advising her in the use of feminine wiles. When non of these efforts seem to work, Rebecca tries yet another tack, only...